This invention relates to a flat bar for travelling flats in a carding machine. The flat bar has a carrier body with a support for the flat clothing and two opposite flat ends which glide on a slideway and which are force-transmittingly coupled to an endless traction member.
Conventionally, the carrier body of the flat bar is a hollow, extruded aluminum component, and a steel rod extends through the hollow space in the longitudinal direction of the flat bar. On the two opposite, projecting ends of the rod a respective, block-like flat bar ends are inserted and secured by a screw which engages axially a thread provided at the respective ends of the steel rod. The two flat bar ends glide on the stationary slideways of the carding machine. On each side of the flat bar, between the end face of the carrier body and the flat bar end a flat chain (traction member) extends, whose links are traversed by the ends of the flat bar. The flat chain drags the flat bars over the slideways and presses the flat bar ends onto the slideways.
It is a disadvantage of the flat bars according to the prior art that their structure and installation involves substantial expense; particularly the manufacture of the block-like, inserted flat bar ends is complicated. It is a further disadvantage of the conventional flat bar that between the flat bar ends and the slideway significant frictional losses are generated. It is also a drawback that the flat chain stretches, that it is easily soiled with dust and fiber and that the chain links must be lubricated.